Your Majesty, I’m Not that Man - Chapter 3: Your Majesty, Why Are You Doing This? (3)

This is seriously strange.

As Levinia returned to the harem with the support of the maids, she couldn’t stop thinking. Cassion was acting strange—too strange.

‘No, wait. Maybe this is just a part that was left out of the original story. The original only mentioned Yannis as the sole woman.’

Yannis was the villainess of the original story. While there were other antagonists who disrupted the relationship between the male and female leads, she was by far the most prominent. The story mentioned that when Cassion felt the desire to sleep with a woman, he would seek out Yannis, but after becoming involved with Albert, he never sought her out again.

Though there were other women in the harem, Yannis was the only one he visited consistently. This granted her a unique status within the harem.

Even as other male consorts were discarded, everyone assumed Yannis, at the very least, would end up as a concubine. After all, she had endured six long years in that harem.

Occasionally, Cassion would sleep with other women, but Yannis always managed to drive them away—whether by force or other means.

And yet… Cassion never interfered. He always acted as if he didn’t notice.

‘Oh, she’ll probably do the same to me.’

Levinia had completely forgotten about Yannis’s existence, distracted by the enormous “bomb” that was Cassion. Of all the things to forget… But Levinia was certain Yannis would find her intimidating.

Yannis was the daughter of a tribal chieftain from a region bordering the Empire of Adalaxus. Carrying a deep inferiority complex toward the nobility, Yannis harbored ambitions of becoming empress. Despite her father’s opposition, she had chosen to become one of Cassion’s consorts, only to find herself overshadowed by the male consorts.

Even so, she had an undeniable advantage as a woman. Male consorts, though favored, could not bear children. Yannis was convinced that as long as she bore Cassion’s child, she would win.

Before becoming a consort, Yannis had a confrontation with the daughter of a regional lord, during which she was harshly humiliated. As a result, she loathed the nobility but was also intimidated by the high-ranking aristocracy.

Levinia, being both a high-ranking noblewoman and someone who had nearly become empress, was undoubtedly someone Yannis would fear. Of course, she might respond by attempting to suppress Levinia even more forcefully, seeing her as a branch that needed to be broken.

‘For now, though, I just want to sleep.’

Cassion had kept her up all night, leaving her sleep-deprived. Whatever was going on with this version of Cassion—different as he was from the original—could be dealt with later. He wasn’t displaying any more violence than in the original story, so she didn’t feel an immediate need to prepare for anything.

Walking down the long, wide corridor, Levinia found herself taking the long way around what would have been her palace if she had been crowned empress. Consorts like her were forbidden from entering the empress’s palace.

Despite his indifference toward the consorts, Cassion was clear about that rule. No one was allowed to enter an unoccupied palace, making the restriction absolute.

Levinia thought that was one of the few things Cassion had done well. It was a way of clearly defining everyone’s status and positions.

‘That palace will probably end up belonging to Albert later.’

Though the story had deviated from the original plot, Levinia doubted she could permanently keep Cassion and Albert apart. The entire narrative had described them as “fated partners,” so it was inevitable that they would come together in the end.

When that time came, Levinia hoped Albert would have new people by his side. She prayed that the ones Albert cherished and the ones she cared about wouldn’t overlap. She felt a bit guilty toward Albert’s future loved ones, but…

‘Cassion’s the real problem.’

That’s why she couldn’t afford to give her heart to him. His fate was ultimately to love Albert.

＊ ＊ ＊

Seated on the throne, Cassion leisurely listened to his vassals’ reports, but his gaze suddenly shifted toward the passage through which he had entered. It wasn’t as though his ears were itching, but a faint sense of unease lingered.

‘What is this feeling?’

He found himself regretting not eating with her. After spending the morning together in the bathroom, he had gone straight into the administrative meeting, and something about that didn’t sit right with him. Knowing the meeting would delay his meal, he had sent Levinia back to the harem.

After all, it wouldn’t have been appropriate for her to dine alone in the emperor’s chambers, which lacked its rightful occupant.

‘She keeps… lingering in my thoughts.’

Even though Levinia’s position was different from that of the other consorts, she was still a consort. There shouldn’t have been anything about her that warranted this much attention, yet she occupied his mind constantly.

The vassals, of course, wanted Levinia to become empress, but Cassion wasn’t convinced it was necessary to push for something she herself had rejected.

When his thoughts reached that point, an irritation began to brew within him. He realized it would have been far simpler if he had simply ignored Levinia’s wishes and made her empress from the start. Everything would have fallen into place, eliminating all these annoyances.

Now, however, if he were to try and make her empress, countless complications would arise. Chief among them was the fact that Levinia had explicitly expressed her opposition. Even so, if he were to move forward, he would need a compelling reason to do so. Political justification, however, was meaningless to Cassion.

His power was rooted in his strength and bloodline, and he had no need to consider his vassals’ opinions when it came to marriage. The initial suggestion to make Levinia empress had only come about because the time had come to choose an empress, and Levinia had been recommended by the vassals as a suitable candidate.

While there were political benefits to her appointment, Cassion wasn’t one to be swayed by such concerns. Yet, the thought that things would have been smoother if Levinia had been made empress from the start continued to bother him. His pride wouldn’t allow him to reverse his decision, but it gnawed at him nonetheless.

‘She made the choice herself, so there’s no need for me to dwell on it.’

That was his conclusion, but his heart wouldn’t let the matter rest. The discomfort lingered, and Cassion, unable to understand why, turned his glare toward the assembled vassals in the hall.

The atmosphere grew so tense it felt as though someone’s head might roll at any moment. Under such a chilling aura, the meeting finally came to an end.

＊ ＊ ＊

Returning to her room in the harem, Levinia collapsed onto the bed as soon as she finished her breakfast. It had been ages since she allowed herself such laziness.

‘I thought life would be more relaxed once I entered the palace…’

Back at the ducal estate, her schedule had always been packed with lessons to prepare her as heir and tasks related to managing the estate. After her engagement to Albert, those lessons shifted to bridal training, but the workload from managing the duchy alone had been significant.

Now, all that work had likely been dumped onto the two people who should have been handling it all along—Maxim and Zelenka. Since she had deliberately left only the most urgent matters resolved and allowed the rest to pile up, the two were surely drowning in work by now, probably screaming in frustration.

‘They’ll manage. The ducal household functioned somehow even when I was a child…’

Zelenka had begun shirking her duties as the duchy’s mistress around the time Levinia was 14 and started her heir training. As Zelenka increasingly distanced herself from her responsibilities, discord slowly spread through the estate, forcing Levinia to step in and handle approvals in her place.

Ideally, such matters should have been discussed with Maxim, but Levinia had feared the two would end up fighting. To avoid conflict, she quietly took over more and more of Zelenka’s work.

That set the precedent. From then on, Zelenka began dumping the bulk of her responsibilities onto Levinia. Maxim, while aware of this, never reproached Zelenka. Instead, he too started foisting annoying tasks onto Levinia under the guise of “heir training.”

By now, both of them must have been buried under the very workload they should have been handling all along. Levinia couldn’t help but find the thought slightly satisfying. Maxim, in particular, was probably complaining about having less time to spend with his beloved Hans.

The more she thought about it, the more amused Levinia became. Maxim had never named her as the official heir to the duchy but had no qualms about exploiting her to the fullest.

“Everything’s fine now. You may all leave… Even if someone comes to visit, unless it’s His Majesty, do not wake me.”

With a wave of her hand, Levinia dismissed the maids, who promptly left the room. Now alone, she pulled the blanket up to her chin and let herself drift off to sleep.

Having been woken earlier and summoned to the emperor’s chambers, her bed still bore the traces of her interrupted rest. The thick curtains drawn over the windows made the room perfect for an afternoon nap.

‘Fine, then. I’ll make the most of this and laze around to my heart’s content. In the meantime, His Majesty will probably forget about me. That’ll be my chance to escape…’

As she envisioned her happy future, Levinia gradually slipped into a peaceful dream.

＊ ＊ ＊

At the same time, Yannis, having heard that Levinia had returned to her quarters, finished her preparations and stepped out of her room. Behind her trailed a line of attendants and maids, their demeanor exuding an air of confidence as if they served the empress herself.

This attitude wasn’t entirely unwarranted, as Yannis had never been punished for any harm she inflicted on others in the harem. While this was simply because Cassion paid no attention to his consorts, Yannis mistakenly interpreted this as the emperor’s tacit approval.

“…Which room does that woman occupy?”

“The eastern wing of the concubines’ quarters, in the room overlooking the rose garden,” a maid replied.

Yannis’s expression darkened. That was the room she had been eyeing for years. She had once tried to pressure the steward of the harem into giving her that room, only to be rejected.

‘How dare she…!’

The memory of what the steward had said to her when she demanded the room surfaced in her mind.

“I believe that room is reserved for someone of higher status. It’s not for me to decide, so please bring the matter to His Majesty.”

“Someone of higher status?”

Though she had bullied the steward and other palace staff relentlessly, Yannis had never dared speak up to Cassion.

Biting her lip in frustration, Yannis struggled with her feelings. She was convinced that Cassion favored her in subtle ways, yet she couldn’t even bring herself to make a small request of him. She had seen other consorts attempt to curry favor with him, only to be cast aside after a few nights.

“They say His Majesty spent the entire night with that lady.”

“And in the morning, too. Some of the maids said they heard indecent noises coming from the bathroom,” whispered the maids walking beside Yannis as she strode forward.

Having lived in the harem for six years, Yannis had many eyes and ears throughout the palace. Despite being merely the daughter of a tribal chieftain from the borders, she was the only woman in the harem whom Cassion had visited consistently.

Many high-ranking nobles were certain that Yannis would at least become a concubine. Yannis herself believed this with unwavering confidence.

‘The Wendell family’s daughter, of all people!’

When Yannis first heard that the emperor intended to marry, she had been incredulous. This was the same emperor who dragged men into his bed almost nightly, someone who clearly preferred men over women. She had assumed he would never marry, as he couldn’t make a man his empress.

Yet the woman Cassion had announced as his bride-to-be was none other than the Wendell family’s daughter. Yannis had been pleased when the wedding was canceled, but now, hearing that the emperor had spent the entire night doting on her, she felt an overwhelming sense of urgency.

‘First, I need to see her for myself!’

Yannis resolved to examine Levinia’s face and body. If she deemed her superior, she planned to render her useless by any means necessary. Cassion had never punished Yannis for harming other consorts, and she didn’t think this time would be any different.

Even if the Wendell family demanded her punishment, Yannis believed the risk was worth it. Levinia, nearly crowned empress, posed a significant threat to Yannis.

‘I thought she’d be a quiet, reserved noblewoman. How dare she seduce His Majesty?’

Yannis was convinced Levinia must be a cunning, deceitful woman. In her mind, high-ranking nobles often masked their filth and corruption beneath a veneer of elegance and grace. Even the noble offspring who filled the emperor’s harem were no different.

Some of them had initially feigned disgust at the idea of men loving men, only to beg for the emperor’s attention. When they failed to gain his favor, they even turned their advances toward Yannis herself.

‘I’ll ruin that face of hers!’

Knowing the emperor’s discerning eye for beauty, Yannis believed that one scar on Levinia’s face would be enough for Cassion to lose interest.

As she climbed the staircase and approached the gilded white door adorned with gold accents, Yannis spotted the guards stationed in front of it. Upon noticing Yannis and her entourage, the soldiers greeted her politely.

“Have you come, my lady?”

“…I’m here to meet the young lady. Open the door.”

The soldiers exchanged hesitant glances. Nearly everyone in the harem was familiar with Yannis’s behavior, and they assumed she was here to harass the newest addition to the emperor’s consorts.

One soldier stepped away to fetch a superior, while two others blocked Yannis’s path.

“The young lady has instructed us not to admit anyone other than His Majesty.”

“She and I reside in the same palace. I merely wish to pay my respects as a fellow resident. I have no business with underlings like you, so summon her at once,” Yannis demanded, her voice dripping with arrogance.

“The young lady is resting. Please return.”

The soldier’s polite but firm refusal made Yannis’s eyebrows twitch upward. This was a first. Until now, everyone had grudgingly allowed her to do as she pleased.

The soldiers had been given specific instructions by the steward of the harem: Wendell’s young lady was to be treated with the utmost care, as her future position was uncertain. She was originally meant to be empress, and after last night, when she received the emperor’s favor, her status could change dramatically at any moment.

“How dare you! Move aside! I’ll open the door myself!”

Yannis raised her voice sharply, feigning anger. She thought that even if Levinia wasn’t curious enough to come out, intimidating her into retreating would work just as well to crush her spirit.

“What brings you here, Lady Yannis?”

Levinia’s guard knight, Raphael, appeared and addressed her. Yannis’s expression twisted as soon as she saw him. Raphael, with his strikingly handsome features, was someone Yannis had also set her sights on.

‘Even Raphael? Does this woman have to take everything from me?!’